


An Arm and a Leg

by rnorningstar



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: M/M, Spoilers for s7 (Voltron: Legendary Defender), Unbeta'd, aiming for a vague ending, bc heck u, but au where adam survived, s7, where adam and shiro could get back together or could part ways
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-13
Updated: 2018-08-13
Packaged: 2019-06-27 00:44:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,126
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15674604
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rnorningstar/pseuds/rnorningstar
Summary: Adam survives the explosion. Shiro grieves. The reunion is bittersweet.





	1. Part 1: Underground

**Author's Note:**

> S7 had a lot of controversy surrounding it, and while I understand why, I also completely disagree. This includes Adam's death, despite the fact that I'm writing an AU about him surviving. So, that being said, please keep negativity out of the comments! We're all free to have our own opinions, but I personally liked S7 and wanted to provide the fandom with some positivity! And angst. And a bit of reasoning in other places.
> 
> Enjoy some Adashi!

    Surviving was impossible, is what Sam Holt claimed before he went into battle on Admiral Sanda’s orders. And for the rest of his team… it had been. How he was still alive was a question Adam asked himself frequently… And Shiro had been captured by these people. How was  _ Takashi _ still alive? His peak condition should have only lasted so many years, and yet the man was still out in space, fighting for the universe.

 

    Eventually, Adam decided he shouldn’t be surprised. Takashi Shirogane had always been stubborn, he was a survivor. If something went wrong, he forced it right, even if it seemed downright impossible. After all, he’d left on the Kerberos mission despite Adam’s words, despite the words Adam had regretted saying every night since the Garrison declared Takashi Shirogane and the team of the Kerberos mission dead. Every night those words had haunted him.

 

_ “How much do you care about  _ me _ , Takashi?” _

 

    This all felt surreal. Going into battle with the ‘Galra’, the aliens who had captured his ex, had felt surreal. Shiro always knew he’d do great things. 

 

    And Adam doubted him.

 

    What a fool he had been.  _ “Don’t expect me to be here when you come back,” _ Adam had told Shiro, and yet here he was, sitting in a hospital bed with a missing leg, waiting for Takashi to come home and prove to the world what a hero he was. Whether or not Adam was actually ready to see the man or not was… up in the air -- it had been years since he saw him -- but some part of him ached to see the Black Paladin of this legendary Voltron that Sam Holt talked so much about.

 

    Shiro had certainly been a hero on earth, an icon to everyone. Someone who almost felt like a fictional character; a classic rags-to-riches story of success and a climb to the top. Shiro was ambitious and decisive and never took ‘no’ for an answer. He just kept trying.

 

    Takashi had been a dork. Someone who didn’t necessarily understand relationships, but deserved one wholeheartedly, and wanted to be someone that could be loved. Takashi had aimed to change for Adam; aimed to learn for someone he loved, even if in the end Adam felt abandoned. Takashi had known what he had to do, and did it as if it were his destiny, and Takashi Shirogane, the Black Paladin, was coming back home.

 

    Did Adam matter anymore? Likely… no. Shiro had surely moved on after Adam’s declaration, after Adam failed to support Shiro. If he did, then good -- not necessarily for Adam, but for Shiro. Shiro would brave the world and eventually find someone to adore, even if it took him a hundred years to get over his insatiable appetite for improvement.

 

    Takashi Shirogane would earn what he already deserved. He would be happy.


	2. Part 2: Overwhelmed

    Shiro found himself a little frozen as Iverson led him across campus. His feet moved, but his thoughts were frozen - Iverson mentioned Adam, and then was leading him toward the memorials just outside Garrison grounds. A wall of golden plaques to commemorate fallen pilots, engineers, and communications officers over the years - this was Shiro’s worst nightmare.

 

    When he’d left for the Kerberos mission, he was convinced he’d return to Earth, and if not, his name and picture would be lovingly placed on the wall alongside hundreds of others. Yet… he had yet to see Adam, and Iverson was leading him to the wall personally. The commander had fallen silent, but Shiro had missed the full sentence anyway. He’d heard Adam as they were walking and zoned out.

 

    This couldn’t be real. Slowly, Shiro stepped past the pedestal with the sign dedicating the Galaxy Garrison’s success to brave souls who had given their life, moving on instinct to find Adam’s name.

 

    Shakily, Shiro pressed his fingertips to the image, tears shining in his eyes but not falling. Vaguely, he heard Iverson speak of a meeting, though he mostly heard static, as if the world had crumbled around him.

 

    Years ago, when he left for Kerberos, he had selfishly ignored Adam’s words; of course his fiancee would be waiting for him when he returned. He’d said yes, so why would he call it off over some stupid mission? Yes, it was semi-dangerous for Shiro, but his death would  _ not _ be caused by his arm, that much he was certain of. Shiro was nothing if he wasn’t stubborn to the point of resisting death - apparently literally, now.

 

    When he was captured by the Galra, it knocked perspective into him. Admittedly, however, he had still expected Adam to  _ be here _ , on Earth, safe… But he wasn’t.

 

    He couldn’t grieve now. Not until after the Earth was safe from Sendak. 

 

\--

 

    After the meeting, Shiro wandered through campus partially aimlessly, finding himself standing outside his and Adam’s old dorm. Sam had left it even after Adam’s passing, knowing Shiro would be returning, though Shiro was far from certain he wanted to enter.

 

    Fingers brushing against the keypad and card lock, Shiro stared in silence for several moments before he slowly pulled the keycard from his pocket and slid it through the lock. It beeped, and as he drew his hand away, he noticed it was shaking. Pocketing the card once more, he entered the pin to enter the room, and found himself squeezing his eyes shut as the door slid open.

 

    He knew the door wouldn’t stay open forever, but he kept his eyes closed as he forced himself to step through the door, knowing he wouldn’t have the courage to open the door again. He’d been sleeping in the common area, and he might continue to do so, but for now, he kept his eyes closed until he heard the door slide shut behind him and lock once again.

 

    As he finally opened his eyes, he found himself in an all too familiar room - minus all of his things. Obviously. He’d been gone for ages, he wasn’t expecting his things to be here.

 

    However, the sight of the room was all too familiar, and Shiro soon found himself shaking, feeling as if he’d been closed into a room. He had, but -- a room that leaned closer to a cell.

 

    His mistake of leaving Adam all those years ago hit him in the gut again, and his left hand scrambled for the touchpad to open the door from the inside, only for him to stumble backward out of it, nearly tripping over his own feet as he stumbled into the hallway and into another officer. Apologizing in a stutter, Shiro managed to slide down against the adjacent wall, covering his mouth as he let out a sob, shaking his head.

 

     He wished he could say sorry.


End file.
